How are myths visual? Originally, myths existed only as verbal stories as they were passed down from the older generations to the new ones. With myths arrived the art of storytelling, since the myths were often stretched and enlarged according to the person that was telling them. The history of myth is thus intrinsically related to the history of human creativity and imagination. As soon as the first paintings appeared, myths started operating not just as verbal, but also as visual mediums. In today’s world, film acts as the perfect medium for the visualization of myths. It offers the perfect environment for creativity, mashup and preservation of myths. Film is also an extension of storytelling, it has the power to create identities and portray myths that construct sacred worlds.
As Laderman writes, “films provide myths that frame and make sense of basic, universal dilemmas faced by finite, mortal humans and serve as touchstones for making sense in a cruel, painful world full of suffering, injustice and chaos” (p.9). Films, just like myths, tell us where we come from and how should we act. Their messages can be thought of as religious since they teach about order, meaning, purpose, and identity. For instance, E.T: the Extraterrestrial (1982) teaches us about the value of friendship, Into the Wild (2007) about finding happiness etc. Nonetheless, films borrow directly from existing hero, creation, journey and other myths and present them from a different perspective, in instances like The Godfather (1972)- the succession myth, Forrest Gump (1994)- journey myth and The Matrix (1999)-hero myth. Unlike a verbal story, the visual representation of a particular myth through a film cannot be changed as it stays consistent every time it gets “retold” (re-screened). At the same time, different films may portray the same myth in a different way. Film is thus a visual representation of space and time that helps preserve the sacred worlds created by myths.
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